Positive West Nile Virus Sample Found In Kendall County: IDPH

KENDALL COUNTY, IL — A trap operated in Kendall County has turned up positive for the West Nile Virus, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. The mosquito sample was collected on Thursday in Oswego.

So far, this is the only positive result found in Kendall County among the 11 counties that have now reported positive WNV mosquito samples.

According to the Kendall County Health Department, the virus — which can be transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito — emerged in the New York metropolitan area in the fall of 1999 and quickly spread across the country.

In Illinois, West Nile Virus was first identified in September 2001, when laboratory tests confirmed its presence in two dead crows found in the Chicago area. The following year, the state's first human cases and deaths from West Nile disease were recorded and all but two of the state's 102 counties eventually reported a positive human, bird, mosquito or horse. By the end of 2002, Illinois had counted more human cases (884) and deaths (67) than any other state in the United States.

Mosquitoes become infected with the virus when they feed on infected birds and can then transmit it to humans and animals while biting to take blood. Currently, no vaccination is available for the virus.

County health officials said the incubation period is usually 2 to 6 days but ranges from 2 to 14 days. This period can be longer in people with certain medical conditions that affect the immune system.

Most people infected with the virus will have few or mild symptoms including fever, headache, body aches, skin rash and swollen lymph nodes. Severe infections can cause high fever, stiff neck, disorientation, muscle weakness and, rarely, death.

Measures to reduce your risk of being bitten include staying indoors at dawn, dusk or early evening; wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants whenever you are outdoors; spraying clothes with repellents and wearing protective clothing if spending time in a heavily wooded area and applying insect repellents containing DEET very sparingly on exposed skin.

Property owners can eliminate mosquito breeding areas in the following manner:

• Discard old tires, tin cans, buckets, bottles, and other water-holding containers.
• Tightly cover or store buckets inverted as to not collect water.
• Fill in or drain any low places in the yard, holes in trees, or hollow stumps.
• Keep gutters, drains, and ditches clean so that water will drain properly. Repair leaky pipes and faucets.
• Cover trash containers to keep out rainwater.
• Empty plastic wading pools at least once a week and store indoors when not in use.
• Change the water in birdbaths and plant pots at least once a week
• Stock ornamental ponds with mosquito eating fish or use mosquito larva control products.
• Keep grass short and shrubbery well trimmed around the house.
• Report mosquito-breeding sites to your local mosquito control agency.

The Kendall County Health Department conducts a multi-faceted mosquito surveillance program trapping and testing Culex mosquitoes for the West Nile Virus. The Environmental Health Services unit sets mosquito traps placed throughout the county beginning May 1 through Oct. 1 each year collecting and testing samples on a weekly basis.

Areas of stagnant water are also investigated throughout the season for the presence of mosquito larvae, specifically from the Culex mosquito which is the primary carrier of West Nile in Illinois. Finally, the locations of dead birds are monitored to assist in the assessment of potential West Nile virus activity. The Health Department works closely with the municipalities, townships, and the Kendall County Forest Preserve in monitoring the mosquitoes that may pose a public health threat.

If you find a dead bird it is important to contact the Kendall County Health Department at (630) 553-8026 to collect the bird for testing. Historically, some birds have tested positive for WNV, and results from testing help to determine the extent of WNV activity.

For more news and information like this, subscribe to the Oswego Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here. Don't forget to like us on Facebook!